Be sure to check out the Lake of the Ozarks Runners Facebook page to see what they'll be doing this weekend.

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3 DAYS AT THE FAIR(posted May 20th)

The winner of the 144-hour race at 3 Days at the Fair in Augusta, New Jersey was Johnny Hällneby (Facebook page) of Sweden, who completed an incomprehensible 546 miles. His nearest rival finished 115 miles behind him.

After hitting a wall on day three, Pete Kostelnick, who ran 116 miles to win a 24-hour race a week earlier, bounced back and finished third, with 412 miles completed.
Pete's Facebook post about the race is well worth reading.

An unusually fast group of young runners gave Jade Fletcher perhaps the toughest competition she's ever had to face. On Saturday, Jade ran the Happy Feet for Healthy Minds 5K in Jefferson City and finished in 22:51--about a minute faster than her finish two weeks ago at the Lake Regional 5K. It placed Jade second (of seven) in the women's 13-18 age group.

The women's overall winner was a 14 year-old who finished in 19:41. Second was a 12 year-old, in 19:47, and third was another 14 year-old, in 19:54. Jade was fifth overall, finishing just one second behind a 22 year-old.

The state of Vermont has vexed Todd Raney for the fourth time. On Sunday, Todd was hoping to make Vermont the 47th state in which he's completed a marathon in under four hours, but he came up shy yet again. He finished Sunday's Shires of Vermont Marathon in 4:14:45.
Complete race results can be found here.

Todd will have to return to Vermont before November if he still hopes to make North Carolina his 50th sub-4 state at the Outer Banks Marathon on November 11th.

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GEIST HALF MARATHON(posted May 20th)

While on his annual mancation/junket to visit major league ballparks, Scott Gray detoured to Fishers, Indiana on Saturday to do the Geist Half Marathon. Scott finished in 3:23:42 and placed 56th (of 57) in the men's 36-40 age group, but that still gave him bragging rights as the one and only finisher from the Show-Me State in the 869-runner race.

Scott Gray gave us some free publicity in Indiana by wearing his brand-new LOTO Runners t-shirt. (With huge finishers medals becoming increasing common, we may need a bigger logo.)

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STRIKER LIFE HALF MARATHON, 10K & 5K(posted May 20th)

Willard Haley was our lone Lake-area runner at the Striker Life Half Marathon, 10K & 5K held at Whiteman Air Force Base in Knob Noster on Saturday. Willard ran his best half marathon in over a year and finished in 2:12:31. The competitive men's 55-59 age group was the third-biggest in the race (with nine runners), and Willard had to settle for eighth place.

There were 79, 61 and 35 finishers of the half marathon, 10K and 5K, respectively. Complete race results can be found here.

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JOPLIN MEMORIAL HALF MARATHON & 5K(updated May 20th)

The Lake area was represented well at the Joplin Memorial Half Marathon & 5K on Saturday. Seven of our runners competed in the race that commemorated the seventh anniversary of the devastating tornado that ripped through the heart of Joplin, killing 161 people.

Two of the Lake area's most prominent running couples gathered for a post-race group photo: Pete Leyva, Anita Leyva, Katie Roberts and Stacy Roberts. (A tip of the hat to Stacy Roberts for the photo.)

Anita Leyva was our lone competitor in the 5K, and she won the women's 50-54 age group (over 38 others) by finishing in 27:57.

In the half marathon, Jim McDermott took second-place in the men's 60-64 age group with a 1:47:32 finish. A third-place finish in the 55-59 age group was claimed by Pete Leyva, who crossed the line in 1:56:49. Just behind Pete was another Pete--Pete Groce, who finished in 1:57:35 and took fifth in the 50-54 age group.

Stacy and Katie Roberts finished in 2:12:08 and 2:12:48, respectively. That placed Stacy 24th (of 40) in the men's 40-44 age group, and Katie 18th (of 62) in the women's 40-44 age group.

Finally, Dan Robertson placed in the top half of the 55-59 age group with a 2:15:21 finish.

A few other names familiar to some of us appeared in the results. Ed Green of Lebanon finished the half marathon in 2:13:20, and former Lake-area runner/cyclist Louis Niewald, who now lives in Joplin, finished it in 2:09:15.

Total participation dropped from last year. The half marathon and 5K both had increases, but they were more than offset by the elimination of the marathon. Here are the number of finishers over the last four years:

The Lake area's most kid-friendly and family-oriented run/walk of the year returns on the evening of Friday, June 8th. The non-profit Children's Learning Center's 11th annual Summer Night Glow 5K Run/Walk (Facebook page) will be held at Camdenton High School, with the run/walk starting at 8:00 p.m., and race registration and kids activities starting at 6:15 p.m.

For individual participants, the entry fee is a minimum contribution of $30 if you register by the pre-registration deadline of May 25th. The fee is $35 on race day.

Teams of four or more can pre-register for $25 per person through May 25th. On race day, the fee is $30 per person.

The race starts at 8:00 a.m.
Race-day registration will open at 7:00 a.m.

For those who pre-register on or before May 26th, the entry fee is $20 for adults and $15 for those 11-18 years of age. (Children ten and under are free.) After May 26th, the fees rise to $25 for adults and $20 for those 11-18 years of age. Be sure to register early, as t-shirts are only guaranteed for those who pre-register; all others will receive a t-shirt while supplies last.

A brand-new race is coming to Eldon. The inaugural Eldon Rock Island Road Race will be held on Saturday, June 9th, and will feature 15K and 10K race distances. It will start at 7:00 a.m. at the Rock Island Park in the heart of Eldon. The race is organized by and benefits the Miller County Child Advocacy Council, which organized the former Run for the Children Half Marathon for five years.

You can register online, or click here to download a mail-in registration form.
Entry fees will rise on January 1st, May 16th, and on race day.

The second annual Donut 5KRun/Walk hosted by the Eldon Police Officers Association will be held on Saturday, June 23rd. It will start at 7:30 a.m. at the Public Safety Department building at 111 S. Oak Street in Eldon. Race-day registration will be open from 6:45 to 7:15 a.m.

The entry fee is $20, or $30 on race day. To be guaranteed a t-shirt on race day, you need to pre-register by no later than June 1st.

A registration form with all of the race details can be downloaded here.

In case you didn't attend last year's event, here's how the Donut Run works. Just prior to the race, each participant is given a glazed doughnut. Off-duty police officers and a few volunteers (aka "donut thieves") at multiple locations along the course try to steal the donuts away from the participants. Only those participants who reached the finish line with a fully intact donut receive a medal.

Sadly, the organizer of last year's race, Casey Shoemate, was killed in a traffic accident while on duty with the Miller County Sheriff's Office on April 20th. Casey will no doubt be remembered in some way at this year's race.

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CAN-AM POLICE-FIRE GAMES (posted January 14th)

It's subject to change, but here's a quick look at the schedule for some of the Can-Am Police-Fire Games coming to the Lake of the Ozarks at the end of June.
You can find a tentative schedule for all events here.

The events are open to police and fire personnel, as well as their spouses and adult children.

CAN-AM POLICE-FIRE GAMES
LAKE OF THE OZARKS
JUNE 25 - JULY 1, 2018
SCHEDULE OF SELECTED EVENTS

Sport/Event

Day

Date

Start Time

CROSS COUNTRY:

5K

Wednesday

June 27

8:00 a.m.

10K

Friday

June 29

8:00 a.m.

CYCLING:

Time Trial

Tuesday

June 26

8:00 a.m.

Road Race

Wednesday

June 27

8:00 a.m.

Criterium

Thursday

June 28

8:00 a.m.

KAYAKING:

Tuesday

June 26

8:00 a.m.

RUNNING:

5K

Tuesday

June 26

8:00 a.m.

10K

Thursday

June 28

8:00 a.m.

21K (half marathon)

Sunday

July 1

8:00 a.m.

SWIMMING:

Wednesday

June 27

9:00 a.m.

TRIATHLON:

Sprint

Sunday

July 1

8:00 a.m.

* * * * *

CHRISTMAS IN JULY 5K FUN RUN/WALK(posted April 23rd)

The Tri-County YMCA will hold its first Christmas in July 5K Fun Run/Walk on Saturday, July 28th, at the YMCA's facility on Airport Rd. in Osage Beach. The race will start at 9:00 a.m., with race-day registration opening at 7:00 a.m.
A cookout is planned after the race.

The race is much more a test of physical and mental endurance than speed. Beginning at 6:00 a.m. on December 1st, competitors will run a four-mile course on the golf club's cart paths, and have one hour in which to complete it. (Failure to complete a lap within sixty minutes will end your race.) Runners begin another lap at the top of each hour until either the last remaining runner stops, or 30 hours have elapsed, whichever comes first. Thus, runners could race as few as four miles, or as many as 120.

Registration will open in January, and will be limited to 100 participants.